Retro Thing

Kodachrome's Nice Bright Colors Fade To Black

Kodak has announced the final production run of Kodachrome 64 slide film. The irony is that vintage Kodachrome slides and movies will probably outlast modern digital images and prints by decades.

First introduced in 1935, the film is special in that the color dyes are added in three layers during the developing process. The technique is an environmental nightmare, but results in vibrant, colorfast images that should last a century or more without significant fading. Dwayne's Photo in Parsons, Kansas will process the film until the end of 2010.

The David White Stereo Realist

The David White Stereo Realist. It's a name better suited to an experimental jazz trio than a camera. Still, approximately 250,000 of these unusual 35mm cameras were manufactured from 1947-1971. Its 22 x 23mm image format became the standard for stereo slides and allows you to snap 19 stereo pairs on a standard 24 exposure film.

Why are there three lenses, you ask? The middle one is used for image framing and focusing, while the two outer lenses feature synchronized shutters that capture a pair of images onto the film. The big problem with having three lenses is that focusing has the potential to be a wild and imprecise panic. The Stereo Realist elegantly solved this problem by moving the film plane back and forth while leaving the lenses stationary.

The resulting 3D slides were viewed using a compact handheld Bakelite viewer that resembled a high-end ViewMaster. The process was elegant and simple.

Amazingly, this camera remained on the market for almost a quarter century with only several relatively minor revisions. These days, companies feel the need to pump out dozens of virtually identical camera models annually. Entire product ranges often share the same image processor and electronics with certain features disabled or crippled in lower-end devices. Perhaps the time has come for manufacturers to dramatically trim product lines and refocus on features and quality.

After all, they're selling precision optical devices, not ice cream.

Super 8 Today Magazine

Super 8 Today bills itself as "The magazine for amateur and professional Super 8 filmmakers." Founded in 2005, it's the only remaining English-language magazine of its kind. Editor Chris Cottrill somehow finds the time to fill each issue with a wide range of topics ranging from interviews to Super 8 camera reviews and how-to photography guides.

Issue #14 is available now for the shockingly reasonable price of $6.95, including US postage. Add $1 for postage to Canada, $3 elsewhere.

Super 8 Today: Current Issue

Voigtlaender's New Medium Format Camera Revisits The Past

The Voigtländer Bessa III (€ 2,000 / $ 2,700) is a traditionally styled medium format camera with folding bellows lens. It shoots 6x6 (nominally 56mm x 56mm) or 6x7 (56mm x 70mm) images that squeeze every last grain of detail from a roll of 120 or 220 film. Of course, you'll only get a dozen or so hand-wound shots before having to change the roll.

The Bessa III is equipped with a manually focused six element f/3.5/80mm lens. Mercifully, the shutter is electronically controlled with speeds ranging from 4 to 1/500 seconds. The device also offers electronic center weighted average metering with exposure compensation. In short, it's a curious mix of vintage and modern design. Available May 2009.

Follow the jump for detailed specs.

Remy's Kodak Brownie Camera Collection

The last Kodak Brownie Flash II camera rolled off an Australian assembly line in 1962, over six decades after the first $1 Brownie box camera was manufactured in the USA. The earliest examples of these simple cameras were made from leatherette covered cardboard. They featured a slide-off back cover which resembled a shoebox lid more than a precision photographic component.  But they did the trick, and about 15,000 cameras were produced before the introduction of a hinged film door in March 1900.

The design and film format changed over the decades, although the simple boxlike design remained a comforting constant. The Brownie name lived on in name alone throughout the 1960s until the market shifted to favor Kodak's compact Instamatic cameras.

Remy Steller has compiled an impressive collection of Brownies, ranging all the way from early devices manufactured in Rochester at the turn of the 20th century to a late model flash camera outfit made in Australia in the early sixties. His site is definitely worth a visit, just to see what things were like a century before the camera phone obliterated traditional snapshot photography.

The Remigijus Kodak Brownie Camera Collection

Budget Fisheye Photography

The $65 Demekin pocket fisheye camera is a tiny film camera not that much larger than a 110 film cartridge (still sold at Wal-Mart). The design is absolutely minimal, integrating a gunsight-style parallel viewfinder, 1/100 sec. shutter and fixed focus wide angle lens. It weighs a mere 50g, making an ideal travelling companion.

The only problem is the price, which should be $10, tops.

Demekin Pocket Fisheye Camera [via Gizmodo]

KGB Spy Cameras Come In From The Cold

 
Vladislav Kern recently introduced us to the USSRPhoto collection of Soviet KGB spy cameras. He also introduced us to the lovely Victoria, but that's a whole other story.

Many of the KGB's cameras were clever hacks, like the ingenious movie camera disguise that allowed users to covertly shoot photos of subjects standing directly beside them. The inner workings of a standard Super 8 movie camera were replaced with a tiny F-21 Electronic camera positioned with the lens aimed toward a window in the right side of the case.

Review + Giveaway: "Who We Were" Snapshots Of A Square America

"Who We Were" is a squarish book befitting the square snapshots within. The authors are collectors of black and white snapshots, or “vernacular photography” as the fancy set likes to say. I've come to know Nicholas Osborn through our mutual fondness of home movies. He's displayed his curated collection of photos at museums, galleries, and on his website at www.squareamerica.com. He and his co-authors have chosen 350 amateur photos spanning some 80 years to tell the story of America in "Who We Were".

Spanning the decades from about 1890 through the 70's, "Who We Were" is a collection of amateur anthropology. These random snapshots found at thrift stores and flea markets could be our relatives doing all the important stuff in life; waving to airplanes, drinking a beer... and of course taking pictures of it all. It's doubtful that the original photographers sought to create art, but somehow when collected together these private yet shared memories take on the qualities of art photography.

The photos capture regular people being themselves, and the book wisely lets the photos speak for themselves too. Most pages feature a single picture annotated with anecdotes from the original photographers, or a reproduction of text written on the back of the picture. It only takes a few pages to travel silently between the finer moments of family life and some of the most unfortunate and shameful times in our history.

I'm sure no one thought taking a picture of yet another doughy guy soaking up 50's leisure would be important in the future.  I'm grateful to both the photographer for taking the picture, and to the authors of "Who We Were" for doing such a good job of keeping these little bits of history alive.

We live in a time where it's cheaper and easier than ever to take loads of digital photos. The problem is that few people print out pictures anymore. That means no artifacts for future generations (even our own families) to find. "The Way We Were" shows the continued historic value of physical media. Years from now will amateur historians dig through the piles of discarded cell phones to try to dig out grainy low res pictures of life today? I hope so. This book reminds us of what we owe the future - inadvertent art

Here's some great news... The authors gave us an autographed copy of their book to give away to one lucky Retro Thing reader. All readers are eligible to enter. All you have to do is add a comment to this post talking about your favorite snapshot. If you'd like, you can even upload a little version of it to share with all of our readers. Just say a few words about what makes it special to you. On February 7th, we'll pick one comment at random to win the book.

One additional note. Just like our last giveaway, if you're from outside the US or Canada we welcome your entry, but require that you cover the shipping costs to your country. Thanks for understanding, and good luck to all of you!

Bring a little piece of square America home by purchasing "Who We Were" at ten dollars off the cover price. As a bonus you'll receive a genuine vintage snapshot and a DVD of some of Nick's home movie collection.

You can also find the book at Amazon.com

Polaroid Fanatics Gets Another Chance

A group of former Polaroid employees has formed Impossible b.v., aiming to resuscitate Polaroid's Instant Integral film plant in the Netherlands. I sincerely hope they succeed, although I can't help but wonder if this is more of an emotional decision than a sound business move.

The difficulty is that many die-hard Polaroid users bought as much instant film as they could afford when word broke that production was going to cease in the summer of 2008. That means the company's most lucrative customers might not purchase as much as hoped. Factor in a rotten economy and a lack of new cameras, it promises to be a tough slog.

Still, the company intends to work with Ilford Photo and Harman Technology to bring an innovative new type of film to market by 2010, "produced with a streamlined modern setup." Godspeed, gentlemen.

Link: The Impossible Project [thanks, Will Pinkham!]

Tommy Gun Movie Camera

"Very interesting and Rare military Gun outfit delivered for Vietnam War reporter, with case and 5x lenses." I actually have one of these riflestock camera supports.  It's awesome, though I doubt you could use one in public these days. This guy's is on eBay right this very second, if you've got money to burn...

eBay: Paillard Bolex H8 Military Gun outfit

Steampunk Polaroid Travel Camera

RA Friedman writes, "I've produced a working Steampunk Polaroid mod that uses Fuji pack film. I have to calibrate the focusing scale and make some other improvements, but the beastie works.

An old Polaroid 405 back, some foam, a rubber band, a small bungy and a bit of cogitation and voila! The camera is only about four pounds and takes big 3.25 x 4.25 shots. The final version will be able to fold up easily and won't need bungies. I also hope to add a ground glass for more accurate focusing. Why you ask? Well a Crown Graphic is a bit big to carry around all the time and this will easily fit in my travel bag.

I'm not really sure what brand this camera actually is. It's sort like a Voigtlander Avus, but more cheaply made. It has a Deckel shutter and a Zeiss lens, so it's not trash, but it lacks a tripod socket on the bed , so thus the funky tripod arrangement using a flash bracket.

If the bellows look new, it's because they are. A very nice gent named John Fyfe made a new set for this baby and also overhauled the camera and shutter so it works like new. What would I do without people who do stuff like this?"

Friedman's Tsirkus Fotografika Flickr pool is filled to the brim with steampunk portraits and brilliantly distressed experimental shots. Heartily recommended.

The White Stripes Holiday Camera Contest

Update: We'll announce the winners on Tuesday, January 5th. We'll post their entries, along with a few of our other favorites. Thanks to all who entered, we enjoyed getting a glimpse of your retro gear!

The White Stripes (a.k.a. Meg and Jack White) released a couple of limited edition Lomography camera sets last year. Thinking they'd make the perfect gift for Retro Thing readers, Jack sent us a few to give away for the holidays.

Two lucky winners will each win a pair of custom cameras decked out in the band's signature red, white and black color scheme - right down to the peppermint swirl on their frame advance dials. Only 3000 of each were produced, and together they're worth more than $350.

The Meg Diana+ Multi Function All-Plastic Camera comes with a 'Nobody Knows How To Talk To Children' Ringflash and a custom Peppermint Film Mask filter. Its partner in crime - the Jack Holga Color Flash Camera Kit - includes a funky Fisheye lens, 'The World Through a Plastic Lens' softcover book, a three filter set and the Peppermint lens filter.

Watch the video to find out how to enter. Please, only one entry per person. Contest open to residents of the contiguous USA only (unless you're willing to foot international shipping costs). All entries must be sent to [email removed] by 12 noon January 1, 2009 (CST).

The White Stripes Edition MEG Diana+ and JACK Holga cameras

Hanimex 35 Micro Flash Transforming Camera

As the holidays approach, we all think about those great gifts that took on a life of their own even after Christmas. Hopefully we love all the goodies that we exchange with our loved ones, but every once in a while there's something really special under the tree that we remember forever. When I was in 6th grade, upper management (I refer of course to my parents) decided that it was time to put away the things of childhood.  That was the Christmas I got an electric pencil sharpener and a popcorn popper (both of which I still use!). Those were very nice presents, if not a little anticlimactic after years of Star Wars figures and Lego, but among the torn wrapping was my very own 35mm camera.

This would have been the early 80's, and point and shoot cameras had just begun to be affordable. This Hanimex 35 Micro Flash isn't the camera that Santa brought me years ago (mine was a Keystone), but it is a good example of that era of accessible photography gear. Both cameras had a built-in flash, which was still a relatively new feature in low cost cameras. There were no fine adjustments for exposure, nor any need to focus; any slow moving thing from 5 feet to infinity was in range.

Both my camera and this Hanimex share a similar feature; novel mechanical measures to keep the lens covered until you were ready to snap off a few pics. Mine had twin doors that flipped open at the press of the shutter button, and this Hanimex has a big hatch that covers everything (including the viewfinder). I guess the idea was to make these cameras as idiot-proof as possible by including elaborate mechanisms to keep you from shooting with the lens cap on. Either that or someone in the product design department saw a whole lot of Transformers cartoons.

This Hanimex is a bit more advanced than my old 1980's Christmas camera was, with a few more switches to cycle through some exposure presets. This 35 Micro Flash is aptly named too, as it is a very small camera for its time. The elaborate hatch does protect the optics from typical pocket debris, so I should stop thumbing my nose at Hanimex's engineers. I imagine it took some very long sessions of whiteboarding to come up with ways to make shooting 35mm film friendlier, smaller and more affordable than ever. So I'll thank those breakthroughs that made cheap cameras possible, and gave birth to my lifelong love of photography.

related:

Rollei 35mm Camera - still a mini mechanical marvel
Minox unveils a digital spy camera
Kodak's first digital camera
photokina - retro camera roundup

Eric Archer's Sound Cameras

Eric Archer mods old 8mm cameras to record sound instead of light. He chose vintage movie cameras because of their amazing design, and because the 8mm format fits well with semiconductor light sensors.

He starts by removing the film transport and shutter, leaving just the optics, "My standard modifications include a battery-powered preamp with audio line-out (1/4″ mono jack) + a viewfinder-mounted LED that indicates sensor overload, and a headphone amplifier (1/8″ jack).  I’ve prototyped an accessory mount that holds the sound camera steady along side a video camera, focused on the same point for audiovisual recording.

Looking through the viewfinder, you see a normal image. The light sensor’s active region corresponds to a tiny spot in the center of the viewfinder; sweeping the camera across a scene can reveal different sounds, and their source can be pinpointed easily."

So how does it sound? Weird. Some recordings are like eavesdropping on a robotic mosquito's dream, while others evoke a microphone stuffed into a bucket of sand or the roar of escaping steam.

Eric Archer's Sound Cameras [via Ektopia]

Instant Photography Lives On!

Christian Polt from Lomography.com just bleemed us some intriguing news, "Polaroid die-hards can finally throw off their black suits, come out of mourning and rejoice! While it may be true that Polaroid is getting out of the instant photography game, Fuji has taken the baton. Fuji Instax cameras are a new generation of instant camera. Using Polaroid know-how as a base Fuji has made big leaps in instant photo technology - meaning faster development, more mod-cons, great colour reproduction and cheaper instant film. Lomography is pleased to present the most exciting new instant photo cameras and legendary Polaroid deadstock, plus all the instant film you could need!"

In all honesty, Fuji Instax cameras are truly hideous -- the unfortunate offspring of a forbidden liaison between a decrepit pastel-tinged iMac and an abandoned Fisher Price teething toy. If you buy one, I strongly suggest hiding it in depths of your messenger bag to avoid ritual shunning by your former friend(s) and significant other(s). Whisk it out for a quick snap when no one's looking or when they're too drunk to toss out coherent cheap shots.

Link: Lomography Instant Photography